el·e·men·tal

[el-uh-men-tl]
adjective
1.
of the nature of an ultimate constituent; simple; uncompounded.
2.
pertaining to rudiments or first principles.
3.
starkly simple, primitive, or basic: a spare, elemental prose style; hate, lust, and other elemental emotions.
4.
pertaining to the agencies, forces, or phenomena of physical nature: elemental gods.
5.
comparable to the great forces of nature, as in power or magnitude: elemental grandeur.
6.
of, pertaining to, or of the nature of the four elements, earth, water, air, and fire, or of any one of them.
7.
pertaining to chemical elements.

Origin:
1485–95; < Medieval Latin elementālis. See element, -al1

el·e·men·tal·ly, adverb
non·el·e·men·tal, adjective
non·el·e·men·tal·ly, adverb
post·el·e·men·tal, adjective
pre·el·e·men·tal, adjective
sub·el·e·men·tal, adjective
sub·el·e·men·tal·ly, adverb
trans·el·e·men·tal, adjective
un·el·e·men·tal, adjective
un·el·e·men·tal·ly, adverb

elemental, elementary.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To elemental
00:10
Elemental is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
the offspring of a zebra and a donkey.
a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.
Collins
World English Dictionary
elemental (ˌɛlɪˈmɛntəl) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
adj
1.  fundamental; basic; primal: the elemental needs of man
2.  motivated by or symbolic of primitive and powerful natural forces or passions: elemental rites of worship
3.  of or relating to earth, air, water, and fire considered as elements
4.  of or relating to atmospheric forces, esp wind, rain, and cold
5.  of, relating to, or denoting a chemical element
 
n
6.  rare a spirit or force that is said to appear in physical form
 
ele'mentally
 
adv
 
ele'mentalism
 
n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

elemental
1510s, pertaining to the four elements, from M.L. elementalis, from L. elementum (see element). Meaning simple, uncomplicated is from 1550s; that of relating to first principles is from 1570s. The noun in the occult sense is from 1877.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
It fails the elemental test of any proposed solution, which is to fulfill both
  sides' basic needs.
Adding to the variety are elemental powers such as fire, electricity and
  corrosion that pack an extra punch.
Fiction provides an elemental connection to the human story and struggle that
  non-fiction can rarely match.
The multi-color versions of it tell us the temperature, the density, and the
  elemental composition of the gas and dust as well.
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